BEVERLY HILLS -- For the first time in 64 years, 10 films -- including top-drawer contenders "Avatar'' and "The Hurt Locker'' -- received best picture nods Tuesday when nominations for the 82nd Academy Awards were announced.   

The other best picture nominees were "The Blind Side,'' "District 9,'' "An Education,'' "Inglourious Basterds,'' "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire,'' "A Serious Man,'' "Up,'' and "Up in the Air.''   

This year's best picture category has been expanded from five to 10 in an effort to increase audience interest in the Oscars, which will be presented March 7 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, with Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin -- who co-starred in the romantic comedy "It's Complicated'' -- co-hosting the ceremony.

Nonetheless, the race is widely expected to come down to a shootout between "Avatar,'' directed by James Cameron, and "The Hurt Locker,'' directed by his ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow. Each received nine nominations today.   

It's difficult to imagine two films being more different. "Avatar,'' which was presented in 3-D and relied principally on computer-generated special effects, is a lush, futuristic fantasy, although the story line seems to have borrowed heavily from "Dances with Wolves.'' "The Hurt Locker'' is a lean, gritty tale about an elite bomb-defusing unit in Iraq.   

The Academy Awards nominees for best director were Cameron for "Avatar," Bigelow for "The Hurt Locker," Lee Daniels for "Precious," Quentin Tarantino for "Inglourious Basterds" and Jason Reitman for "Up in the Air."   

"The Hurt Locker'' won the top prize from the Producers Guild of America -- an honor that has often foreshadowed a best-picture win on Oscar night. Bigelow also was named best director by the Directors Guild of America.   

"Avatar'' was named best drama film at the Golden Globe Awards, and "Inglourious Basterds'' was named best ensemble cast by the Screen Actors Guild, giving them both momentum heading into Oscar season.   

Nominated for a best actor Oscar this morning were Jeff Bridges for "Crazy Heart,'' George Clooney for "Up in the Air,'' Colin Firth for "A Single Man,'' Morgan Freeman for "Invictus'' and Jeremy Renner for "The Hurt Locker.''

Bridges, whose performance as an aging, alcoholic country singer in "Crazy Heart'' has already won him best actor prizes at the Golden Globe and SAG awards, appears to be a front-runner in the Oscar race, although Clooney has received critical praise for his portrayal of an oft-traveling, relationship-challenged businessman in "Up in the Air.''   

The best actress Oscar nominees were Sandra Bullock for "The Blind Side,'' Helen Mirren for "The Last Station,'' Carey Mulligan for "An Education,'' Gabourey Sidibe for "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire'' and Meryl Streep for "Julie & Julia.''   

Golden Globe and SAG winner Bullock, whose previous work has been largely regarded as frothy and less than substantial, appears to be a favorite in the best-actress Oscar race for her portrayal of a strong-willed southern housewife who takes in a black teenager and helps foster his football career in "The Blind Side.''   

But she will likely face a strong challenge from perennial awards-season favorite Streep, who has had 16 Oscar nominations in her career, winning two Oscars, and who turned in a stellar performance as cooking legend Julia Child in last year's "Julie & Julia.''   

Nominated for best supporting actor Tuesday were Matt Damon for "Invictus,'' Woody Harrelson for "The Messenger,'' Christopher Plummer for "The Last Station,'' "Stanley Tucci for "The Lovely Bones'' and Christoph Waltz for "Inglourious Basterds.'' Waltz, an Austrian, is widely regarded as a favorite for his portrayal of a sinister Jew-hunting Nazi in Tarantino's World War II fantasy.   

The best supporting actress nominees were Penelope Cruz for "Nine,'' Vera Farmiga for "Up in the Air,'' Maggie Gyllenhaal for "Crazy Heart,'' Anna Kendrick for "Up in the Air'' and Mo'Nique for "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire.''     For best adapted screenplay, the nominees were Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell for "District 9;'' Nick Hornby for "An Education;'' Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Lannucci and Tony Roche for "In the Loop;'' Geoffrey Fletcher for "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire;'' and Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner for "Up in the Air.''   

Nominated for best original screenplay were Mark Boal for "The Hurt Locker,'' Tarantino for  "Inglourious Basterds,'' Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman for "The Messenger,'' Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for "A Serious Man,'' and Bob Peterson and Pete Docter for "Up.''   

"Up,'' along with its best-picture nomination, was nominated in the best animated feature film category. The other nominees in that category were "Coraline,'' "Fantastic Mr. Fox,'' "The Princess and the Frog,'' and "The Secret of Kells.''   

The best foreign language film nominees were "Ajami'' from Israel, "El Secreto de Sus Ojos'' from Argentina, "The Milk of Sorrow'' from Peru, "Un Prophete'' from France, and "The White Ribbon'' from Germany.   

The nominations were announced at 5:30 a.m. by actress Anne Hathaway and Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Tom Sherak at the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.